PRAIRIE VIEW, Texas — The 2020 Election has been anything but routine and in the city of Prairie View, there's been a big shake-up on the city council. For the first time in years, Prairie View A&M graduates hold the most seats on the city council. The Panthers said they plan on making a lot of changes.
"We've always had Prairie View graduates be representative in local government or local politics, but this time, it just took the hat," said newly-elected Mayor Brian Rowland.
A rural community just 50 miles outside of Houston, with no public transportation or even a grocery store, Mayor Rowland said to expect some improvements soon in the city.
"What we're going to do is kind of do a new innovative thing," the mayor said. "We're going to start what is called a community garden and have a solar bus that lives off the grid. It will allow people to get WiFi."
The newly-elected city council is the youngest in Texas, according to Rowland. But that's not all. Newly-elected County Commissioner Kendric Jones is the youngest county commissioner in the state. At just 24 years old, he said he looks forward to "being a proactive, compassionate and transparent commissioner for the people of Waller County."
Newly-elected Councilman Nathan Alexander III said the huge student voter turnout is what allowed him to make history in this local election.
"It was because of the high voter turnout on the campus of Prairie View A&M we were able to affect such suitable change and get the candidates who best align with students' interest and the community's interests," Councilman Alexander said.